Wärtsilä continues to invest in a 100% renewable energy future by providing seed funding to Soletair Power Oy

The technology group Wärtsilä has agreed to provide EUR 500,000 in seed funding to Soletair Power Oy, a Finland based startup company operating in the field of Power-to-X. Soletair Power Oy has developed a unique concept to improve air quality in buildings by capturing carbon dioxide (CO2) and converting it to synthetic renewable fuel. Soletair Power’s concept represents an important step towards carbon neutral societies and supports Wärtsilä’s strategy in leading the energy sector’s transformation towards a 100% renewable energy future.

“As an energy systems integrator, Wärtsilä understands, designs, optimises, builds and serves complex power systems enabling our customers to create sustainable energy for the future. To achieve this, we build strategic partnerships, innovate with startup companies, and actively recruit new talent to strengthen and support our expertise in new business areas. Our funding for Soletair Power Oy is a concrete example of this philosophy, and it takes us one step closer to 100% renewable world,” commented Matti Rautkivi, Director for Strategy and Business Development in Wärtsilä’s Energy Business.

While hydrogen can be produced from renewable energy sources, the Soletair Power concept captures the CO2 from the air and utilises synthesis to combine these into hydrocarbons suitable for synthetic renewable fuel. Wärtsilä sees great value in the Soletair Power concept and will provide global support in the development and commercialisation of the technology.

“The Soletair Power solution represents an important stepping stone towards a sustainable future. We are excited to be working with Wärtsilä, a global technology leader and innovator, in bringing this solution to the market,” added Petri Laakso, newly appointed CEO of Soletair Power Oy.

Building a sustainable future for the energy industry is the basis of Wärtsilä’s Smart Energy vision. This involves maximised renewable generation, which is enabled by integrating flexible energy generating assets together with intermittent renewables. In the 100% renewables world, the majority of the energy produced will be from solar PV and wind power. The required operational flexibility will be provided by flexible gas assets using synthetic renewable fuels, by the extended use of energy storage technology, and by optimising the lifecycle of the existing installations.

Caption text: Anja Frada, Vice President, Business Development, Finance and Control, Wärtsilä Energy Business and Ari Piispanen, shareholder, Soletair Power Oy, signed the seed funding contract between the companies on 12 April 2019. 

For more information on Soletair Power Oy:
www.soletairpower.fi 

Previously published:
Wärtsilä is in search of start-ups with Power-to-X technology to join SparkUp Challenge 

Wärtsilä SparkUp Challenge concept is about finding start-ups and scale-ups which have innovations and business ideas in line with Wärtsilä’s Smart Marine and Smart Energy visions for turning these innovations and ideas into collaboration and co-creation projects.

For further information, please contact:

Matti Rautkivi
Strategy and Business Development Director
Wärtsilä Energy Business
Tel: +358 40 480 37 43
matti.rautkivi@wartsila.com

Mirja-Maija Santala
Manager, Marketing & Communications
Wärtsilä Energy Business
Tel: +358 400 793 827
mirja-maija.santala@wartsila.com 

Wärtsilä Energy Business in brief
Wärtsilä Energy Business is leading the transition towards a 100% renewable energy future. As an energy system integrator, we understand, design, build and serve optimal power systems for future generations. Wärtsilä’s solutions provide the needed flexibility to integrate renewables and secure power system reliability. Our offering comprises engine-based flexible power plants – including liquid gas systems – hybrid solar power plants, energy management systems and storage and integration solutions. We support our customers over the lifecycle of their installations with services that enable increased efficiency and guaranteed performance. Wärtsilä has 70 GW of installed power plant capacity in 177 countries around the world.
www.wartsila.com/energy 

Wärtsilä in brief
Wärtsilä is a global leader in smart technologies and complete lifecycle solutions for the marine and energy markets. By emphasising sustainable innovation, total efficiency and data analytics, Wärtsilä maximises the environmental and economic performance of the vessels and power plants of its customers. In 2018, Wärtsilä’s net sales totalled EUR 5.2 billion with approximately 19,000 employees. The company has operations in over 200 locations in more than 80 countries around the world. Wärtsilä is listed on Nasdaq Helsinki.
www.wartsila.com